The True Face of Another
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Chapter 23 - Rescue
Severus cursed when his conversation with Albus was interrupted by a loud gasp outside his study doors. He had apparently failed to set privacy wards on the room before floo-calling the headmaster. And now Potter - for he was sure it was the Gryffindor - had overhead them.
Ending the floo connection, he quickly made to follow the boy, maintaining his distance, but tailing him close enough to see where he was heading. He wanted to give him some modicum of space, while also keeping an eye on the boy.
When it became clear precisely which garden path Pottter was taking, Severus took a moment to examine his own reactions. In the past, he would have been livid to see the boy encroaching on territory that was his. And the garden he and Lily had built together - that he had charmed to stay exactly as they'd left it as a memento of their friendship - was one of the most private places that existed for Severus.
But the fact that the wards had let the boy in in the first place - wards he and Lily had originally erected together - was suggestion enough that the boy should not be barred from the place.
As he continued along the path, he again cursed himself for being so careless as to not ensure such a discussion was not being had within earshot of either boy. Especially Potter.
With Potter's famous curiosity, and the degree to which he'd been left in the dark in the past, he would of course take any opportunity to gather more information if he got wind that others were discussing matters that concerned him.
How much had the boy heard? Presumably the last - and most damning - part of their discussion. It was up to Severus now to make amends and help the boy process the truly horrifying reality of the horcrux. Though, for once, Severus was not as pessimistic as Albus in regards to how far-reaching the effects of the dark magic had been on Potter as a result of it.
When he entered the garden, he was overwhelmed by a feeling of longing. It had been so long since he'd come here.
But now was not the time to dally. He looked around, but did not immediately see the boy. He was certain Potter had come this way, so he had probably noticed Severus and fled. Severus cursed himself again. He had waltzed in without using concealment magic - he'd thought that best, as hiding and dissembling surely were not what was necessary to make forward progress with Potter.
Unfortunately, he had underestimated the boy's desire to be alone as well as his skill at hiding.
And given that this garden was so close to the edge of the wards, he should have prioritized the boy's safety first and emotions second.
Severus called Potter's name before taking out his wand and casting revelio. He felt like his blood had turned cold. The boy had almost certainly left the wards. Severus followed the signal to the boy's apparent position but there was nothing there. No wait… There was a shimmery garment on the grass. He picked it up and examined it briefly - it was an invisibility cloak of exceedingly good quality. His eyes widened slightly. This explained much when it came to Potter's skill at rule breaking.
But for Potter to have dropped this...Severus sensed another spike of magic a ways off and apparated to the spot. He materialized just in time to see Potter getting whisked away by a tall, large-framed death eater.
No! Severus hissed, slamming a fist into the ground, missing hitting a pair of broken glasses - obviously Potter's - by a few inches. Severus was unable to track where they'd gone, and had no knowledge of the Dark Lord's new, no doubt heavily concealed location. As it was, Severus had no way of reaching the boy.
He apparated directly to his study and headed for the floo, but stopped at the sight of his godson standing there waiting for him.
"Severus? What's going on? You'd left the door to your study open and I couldn't find you or Harry anywhere."
"Potter has been taken."
The blond looked stricken. "No...w-was it Death Eaters?"
With a nod, Severus threw a handful of powder into the floo and barked "Albus Dumbledore!"
Severus pulled his head back into the room after briefing the old wizard who assured Severus he would do what he could to locate Harry and be in touch soon.
"Is there anything I can do?"
Severus looked at Draco for a moment and considered him. "Gather an assortment of pain and healing potions, in particular anti-cruciatus potions. I am certain we will need them upon our return."
Draco nodded, looking less lost now that he had a job. "I'll make sure to have it all ready for you, Severus."
Suddenly a blinding heat on Severus's chest grabbed his attention. He reached into his robes and extracted a stone. "It's Potter!"
A slight smile curled his lips. Well done, Potter. This would simplify matters considerably. Flying into war mode, Severus pierced his godson with a serious look. "These stones enable one to bypass the strongest wards and apparate to the holder's location. Draco. Do you have your stone?"
"Yes, it's right here."
"Good. I will apparate to Potter's location. There is no telling his current state, but I anticipate it to be poor. Once I leave the manor, you must clutch your own stone to open the path that will call us back to you. I will side-along apparate with Potter once I have him secured. Just to be safe, do not release the stone until I return. I may not be able to apparate back right away, but the path will be open as long as you are calling us. Understood?"
Draco nodded.
"Oh, and send Albus a patronus to inform him as well," Severus said as an afterthought.
An idea occurred to Severus, suddenly, and he pulled the invisibility cloak he'd picked up in the forest out of his robes and donned it.
"It's Potter's," was all he said in response to his godson's wide eyed expression, presumably at his own invisible visage. "I'm relying on you, Draco."
"You can count on me. And Severus! Be careful..."
Severus cast a notice-me-not charm for good measure, clutched the stone and apparated to where Potter's signal was coming from.
-HP-SS-DM
Severus materialized in the middle of the grand hall of the dark lord's newest hideout. All around him were familiar black-cloaked figures. As of yet, they didn't seem to have noticed his appearance, though there was no guarantee that would last.
The biggest problem was his dark mark. Even with Potter's invisibility cloak, the charm, and his skill in Occlumency, the Dark Lord would be able to sense their connection through that link - the question was when, not if, he would notice Severus. Which meant the head of Slytherin was on borrowed time.
He quickly surveyed things. The death eaters were in a large circle, and there was no doubt as to what they were crowding around. A large death eater - probably Goyle - moved aside some, giving Severus a clean view of Potter for the first time. The boy was curled in on himself, not making a sound. His robe was torn, his face and body were bloodied, and he looked so very very young and helpless.
This was the savior Dumbledore insisted they let walk to his death?
No.
Severus would not have it. This before him was a boy who needed protection and guidance, but had thus far consistently been deprived of both.
Severus could try to take the dark lord and his cronies by surprise and steal the boy away, but he was certain they would have taken the boy's wand…and if possible, he wished to retrieve this too.
His heart sank when a charm revealed its location. The dark lord was toying with it in a way that appeared careless, but alert the wizard to his intentions to steal it away, and it would certainly not be easy. And Severus saw no way to retrieve it without alerting the dark wizard to his actions.
So all he had in his favor was the element of surprise. He couldn't waste it. He would attempt to retrieve the wand, but if he could not without unduly endangering Potter's life, so be it. The wand could be replaced. The boy couldn't.
Another death eater had begun torturing Potter. This was his chance - they were distracted enough that he should be able to get close. Slipping into the circle through the gap still open beside Goyle, Severus analyzed the relative positions of the Dark Lord and his death eaters.
Despite the excruciating pain Potter had to have been in, he didn't make a peep, though Severus could see the boy spasming. When Severus was close enough to touch his ward, he focused on the Dark Lord and cast the strongest wandless and wordless Expelliarmus he could. The element of surprise worked - the wand flew from the Dark Lord's grip and into his.
It was chaos - the Dark Lord was screaming Potter's name, but when the death eaters looked around, he was nowhere to be seen, as Severus had grabbed the boy and now had him tucked tight against his chest, fully hidden under the invisibility cloak with him.
Severus looked down to meet those green eyes, and was shocked by how bright they seemed at the moment. The boy was eyeing him with an expression Severus couldn't decipher but it seemed to go beyond simple gratitude. Without the hated glasses, the boy looked even younger, reminding Severus far too much of the child he'd seen in that godforsaken broom closet.
"How nice of you to drop by...Severus."
The way the dark lord said his name made a shudder wrack through him. He made to disapparate but lost the needed focus as pain originating in his dark mark suddenly flooded his body. It was intense pain, beyond anything he could remember feeling from a cruciatus or from the dark mark previously. He tried to moderate his grip on Potter so as not to hurt the boy.
"Snape?!" Bellatrix's unmistakable shriek filled the air. She clearly didn't know where he was precisely, but she didn't seem to care, and began letting off a litany of dark spells in random directions, obviously unconcerned with whether a stray curse might hit one of her compatriots. Through the haze of pain, Severus could sense her spells getting dangerously close. Potter in his arms, he dodged, trying not to reveal his position.
The dark lord was watching them with amusement, as if this struggle was the greatest entertainment for him.
"So that's where you've been hiding, Potter. With the traitor Snape," he spat. "Opening a home for orphans now, are you, boy? Don't tell me that's where the Malfoy brat has been hiding as well…"
"Drakie poo? With Snape?!" The shrieks coming from the banshee of a witch were terrible enough alone. But the last thing Severus needed was to have both boys be targets for death eater kidnappings.
"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised," the dark lord continued, "Considering how you lusted after that mudblood. I wonder, Severus, are you trying to play the father figure to your mudblood's spawn? Or have you, perhaps, developed a taste for young boys? I assure you, I can help you satisfy your needs in this way if you pledge undying loyalty to me...but don't think I will forgive you your betrayal so easily."
Ignore him. Don't play along.
"No? A pity." And then Severus just barely managed to dodge an onslaught of curses sent his way from the dark wizard. So he thought at least, but then he felt a series of sharp pains in his right shoulder and the whole arm fell limp, useless. Severus could feel Potter doing his best to cling to him and support them despite his cruciatus-addled body.
"L-let's get out of here, sir," Potter urged.
But then Bellatrix was there, dragging Potter away from him. Potter's eyes, determined and pleading, pierced Severus in horror. "Sir!"
His mind only on getting that bitch's hands off of Potter as quickly as possible, Severus cast his strongest wandless Sectumsempra, watching neutrally as her hands were severed from her body.
He didn't stop to assess the damage beyond that, but just took the opportunity to grab Potter, flinging the severed hands away from him before clutching the stone and apparating them away, ignoring the pain singing through his body.
-HP-SS-DM-
They landed in a pile on the floor of Potter's room. The place had been rearranged to look like a thrown-together hospital room.
Draco, Madame Pomfrey, and Albus were all waiting for them, and instantly crowded around when they appeared.
"Severus! Harry!" Draco got there first, and helped his godfather to his feet, while Madame Pomfrey attended to Potter. Both were assisted to sit down - Severus on a temporary bed.
Severus was shaky, but it was nothing compared to the spasms that continued to wrack Potter's body every couple of seconds.
"Get Potter...anti-cruciatus potions."
Madame Pomfrey, who had been casting diagnostic spells, nodded, taking the vials from Draco as he offered them.
Severus's right arm needed attention, but otherwise, most of his pain was lingering nerve pain radiating from his dark mark.
Once they had been tended to some, Albus spoke after releasing a heavy sigh. "I am sorry to burden you with this so soon after your return, Severus, but I need to know what happened."
Severus looked at his old mentor and nodded, beginning his recitation.
"I can tell you what I know. Otherwise, I will give my best guess based on the information I have. Potter, you may confirm or deny the accuracy as I go." The boy nodded, and Severus began.
"Potter, though presumably unintentionally, left the manor wards of his own volition. No sooner had he left the protection of the wards, however, that the dark lord identified his location and sent one of his death eaters after the boy. Potter was abducted within two minutes of having left the manor wards" Here he met Potter's eyes, and at the boy's nod, he continued.
"By the time I arrived at the dark lord's stronghold, Potter appeared to have already been subjected to a lengthy torture session, of which the cruciatus curse was clearly a large component. Beyond that and what Poppy has gathered from diagnostics, I am unsure as to the extent of the torture. I suggest we wait until Potter is ready to go into the details, if he so wishes."
The other occupants of the room exchanged surprised glances at Severus' unusual show of sympathy for the young gryffindor.
"Thanks to making use of Potter's invisibility cloak," here he pinned the headmaster with a look, as he was positive the man knew all about it, "I was able to time my reveal such that I could remove Potter from imminent harm as well as retrieve his wand. We were attacked, of course, but managed to disapparate without incurring too much in the way of serious injury. At the very least," he smiled evilly, "we escaped the encounter without severed limbs, which is more than can be said for Bellatrix."
"Severed limbs?" Draco asked with an eyebrow raised.
"I simply introduced her to a spell of my own creation," Severus responded lightly. "Pity she will almost certainly have already been patched up by her compatriots."
"Y-you c-created that spell?" Potter was clearly struggling to cleanly articulate his words at the moment, which was a textbook post-cruciatus effect. Severus just hoped there would be no permanent damage to the boy.
"That is correct, Potter."
"Y-yeah...you create spells. You and m-mum did that together too…" The boy mumbled, seeming to be speaking to himself more than anything.
Severus was all too aware of the knowing glance being shot his way from Albus, but gave the older wizard no sign of it.
"Albus," Severus said soberly, looking his mentor straight in the eye. "This will come as no surprise, but I am afraid it is no longer a secret to the dark lord that Potter is residing with me. He also strongly suspects Draco to be here as well."
Draco flinched at this.
"I see. That is indeed to be expected given the circumstances." Albus sighed. "No matter, my boy. We can discuss what to do about this later in more depth."
Madame Pomfrey tended to Severus' shoulder, removing some mangled bone and tissue and prescribing muscle tissue regeneration and skele-gro for the duration of the evening, and instructing him to rest the arm for the next day.
For his part, Potter was to rest for the rest of the day, as well as take it easy the following day. He was prescribed a nerve regeneration potion targeting the effects of the cruciatus curse until his spasms dissipated and his speech returned to normal. Beyond that, they would monitor him for changes.
Albus announced that he would call on Severus in the morning, and he and Madame Pomfrey left them to their own devices.
After making sure they had everything they needed for the moment, Draco excused himself to go attend to some business in the potions lab. From the way Draco flushed a bit as he said it, Severus presumed his godson had left things in some disarray in his rush to get them the potions they needed.
Which left Severus and Harry alone.
The two were completely silent for a long moment. Severus sighed. "You have had quite the ordeal tonight, Potter. I suppose I should give you your privacy and allow you to get some rest."
"Don't y-you have to rest too, sir?"
"I'm fine," Severus rolled his eyes. "Poppy is a mother hen, but she's not my mother." The potions master started to get up.
"Please, sir." Severus stared at the boy in shock. Potter was blushing and looking down at his hands in obvious embarrassment.
Severus cocked an eyebrow. "Yes, Potter?"
"C-can't you s-st…" The boy trailed off. The shyness he was exhibiting was in stark contrast to the bravery he had shown around the Dark Lord and his minions. Severus decided to take it easy on the boy, as it was quite clear to him what the boy seemed to be saying, though it was most surprising...
"Am I to understand you would prefer I remain here with you?"
"I-er, i-if you wouldn't mind. Just for a little bit." Potter was almost whispering by the end.
Severus sighed. He supposed it was understandable. The boy had been through a horrific experience and probably didn't wish to be alone so soon after.
Severus sat back down on the bed next to Potter's, getting as comfortable as he could.
"Thank you for coming to save me," the boy mumbled.
While Severus was used to responding to the boy with snark laced through his words, he understood that this wasn't the time.
"You are welcome." The boy looked at him in surprise. "I could hardly have done any less. I...regret that I was not able to prevent the needless torture you endured at their hands."
The boy shrugged. "It's okay...I've been c-crucioed before."
"Which, I might point out," Severus said with some bite, "is not okay."
After a short silence, the boy spoke again. "I don't think he k-knows."
"Knows what?"
"That I'm his h-horcrux. If he knew, he...wouldn't be trying to k-kill me."
"You are not his horcrux, Potter. It seems as if his horcrux resides within you, the physical sign of which is your curse scar. But that is not the same as being his horcrux."
"You and Dumbledore sa-said it's affected me, blended-ed with me. Some of my magic is from it, like the parseltongue. Who's to s-say how much of me is really the horcrux? Maybe my magic is all from Voldemort, maybe...maybe I'd be a squib otherwise."
Severus held up a hand to stop the flow of words. "Potter, that is nonsense."
"You don't know that!" Potter exploded, and Severus smiled a bit despite himself. There was the famous Harry Potter spark. His speech patterns were cleaner in his passion, too, as if he were able to power through the effects of the cruciatus in that moment.
"No, I don't. But I will remind you, Mr. Potter, that it was Professor Dumbledore who suggested what you are alluding to. And Albus, for all his brilliance, always neglected his studies of dark and black magic. Whereas I," he said silkily, "steeped myself in its study for years."
At least the boy seemed to be paying attention.
"I therefore have some intuition around how the darkest magics work and while, yes, they will often exercise a parasite-host relationship, that is not always the case to the extent that those purely light wizards like Albus suggest. It is often much more..symbiotic."
"S-so what are you saying?"
"I am saying that the horcrux may very well be within you, content to be protected, and not necessarily feeding off your magic or vice versa, at least not to either's detriment. You are keeping it alive, as it very likely kept you alive the night the Dark Lord attacked your parents. There are clearly some obvious signs - the mental connection you and the Dark Lord share - but otherwise, I would say it more likely than not that the horcrux has not had a great effect on you otherwise."
"But what about m-my magic? Are you saying it might be my own afterall? How d-do you explain the Parseltongue?"
"I cannot explain it." He held up his hand to stem the boy's retort. "Yet. But for all I know there is some gift of parseltongue in your ancestry that skipped generations and manifested itself in you. You realize you are related to the Blacks, yes?"
The boy nodded.
"The Blacks intermarried with every dark pureblood family, and it is not unlikely that included someone from the Slytherin line."
"But that would mean...er, wouldn't that mean I'm r-related to Voldemort?"
Severus rolled his eyes. "To the extent that almost all pureblood wizards are. Go back far enough and you'll find a common ancestor between yourself and other human beings. Do not obsess over this detail."
"How c-can we find out for real?"
"There are ways...but the most straightforward…" Severus trailed off.
"What's'it, sir?"
"Legilimency, Potter. Or, more precisely, for you to sharpen your Occlumency abilities enough to guide a Legilimens such as myself to fully examine the connection."
Severus expected Potter to recoil at the suggestion. After all, their lessons had been an absolute disaster. But Potter surprised him yet again.
"I th-think I'd like to give it a try, sir. If I can learn Occlu-clu-mency, I think it would be good...but I don't want it to be like last time."
"That makes two of us, Potter." Severus sighed. "It...won't be like last time. I assure you."
"Why, sir?"
"Because last time, as much as I dislike admitting it, I did not make a real attempt to teach you. This time, I will make sure you understand what I am asking you to do, and allow you to ask questions. Furthermore…"
"We have to trust each other, r-right?"
"That is...not exactly a requirement, but it is difficult to teach someone the art when absolutely no trust exists between the pair."
At Severus' questioning look, Potter shrugged. "There was a b-book in the libra-ra-ry on Occlumency so I grabbed it one day and read a little bit. Just to get the basic idea. It s-sounded like a good thing to learn. It m-might help me with my nightmares, too."
"Then we shall get started as soon as you feel well enough to do so."
"Sir?"
"What is it, Potter?"
"Why aren't you a-angry with me? I left the wards and almost got b-both of us killed."
"I am extremely angry, Potter. However, ensuring your present well-being has been on the fore of my mind. That being said...your actions - apparently feeling the need to run and hide from me when you were unsure of the boundaries of the wards! - was beyond the height of carelessness. You need to start thinking about the consequences of your actions, and realize that you should not put yourself in danger!"
"I'm s-sorry, sir. Really. And I'm sorry you got hurt coming to rescue me."
"It is no matter. It was paramount that I get you to safety."
"And er...that spell uh, sectersempra? You-you came up with that?"
"Sectumsempra, and yes. It is a powerful spell, but very dangerous. It is a powerful cutting curse that rends flesh apart."
"Thank you for that t-too. For using that against Bellatrix. Of all of them, I d-didn't want her to touch me again."
"She was the one who killed Black, correct?"
"Yeah...and she has a s-sick sense of humor."
Severus grimaced in understanding. Perhaps the dark witch had used Black's death to mock Potter during the torture session? "That she does," he nodded.
He decided to offer Potter more. "Even when I counted myself among the dark lord's ranks, I never cared for Bellatrix. She is one person I didn't mind using that spell on. But Potter," and here Severus made sure the boy was looking him in the eye, "I cannot impress on you enough how critical it is that you understand something. You may not have been shown this as a child growing up with those beasts, but your life has value and you need to try harder to keep yourself from danger. Not for others. For yourself."
Potter looked embarrassed but a little pleased nevertheless. But suddenly, he paled.
"Sir...you and Dumbeldore...you mentioned a c-cupboard...how much do you…"
"I know that for some length of time, your room at the Dursley's residence was the cupboard under their staircase. How long exactly, I do not know."
"Until I got my Hogwarts letter," Potter whispered, sounding resigned.
Severus had to fight to control his anger at hearing his worst fears realized. "So for 10 years," he bit out, harshly. He took a breath and made sure he was in control of his tone before continuing. "And then they moved you to a small but at least more normal room. Or it would have been, had there not been bars on the windows and padlocks on the door!"
"How do you know this, sir?"
"I took the liberty of visiting the house, Potter. There were traces of magic, strongest in those areas where you had felt the strongest emotions, that allowed me to witness some of what you'd gone through. I only witnessed a sample, but it was enough to get a general picture of your life with those...people," he spat.
Potter was now staring determinedly at his hands, clutching his bedcovers to him. He appeared to be closing up. Severus wouldn't allow this.
"Potter. I wish you to know that you didn't deserve this treatment. Had I known, I…" He broke off, because what truly would he have done had he know Lily's child had been abused in such a way growing up? Perhaps he would have done nothing, but he liked to think he would have intervened.
"It wasn't a-anything I couldn't handle…"
"That is precisely what I used to tell myself and others when I was in a similar boat," Severus said softly, and Potter looked up at him in shock.
"Similar boat?" Potter mouthed.
"I am aware you know something of my life with my muggle father. He was...not a kind man, to me nor my mother. There were moments, hours, days, when it seemed unbearable. But at least in my case, I had my mother, who I knew cared for me, and I had Lily."
Potter's eyes widened and it was no wonder the boy was shocked - Severus was never this open. But he felt, given that he had exposed Potter's raw wounds in such a manner, doing the same might keep the boy in this conversation.
"Furthermore, we made our escape when I got to Hogwarts, and came to live here. You, Potter, were not so lucky. You had no one - no allies - or am I mistaken?"
The boy shook his head slowly. "N-nobody wanted to risk getting on Dudley's bad side so they didn't try to make friends with me. The Dur-ur-sleys turned everyone against me, including the teachers and other kids' parents."
"And you had no choice but to put up with it. Well...you are out of there now, Potter. But…" He paused, wanting to ensure the boy was listening. "Even if they were still alive, I want you to know...I would not allow you to be put back in their dubious care."
Potter gave him a look like he was testing him, trying to gauge his sincerity. Eventually, the boy broke the gaze and just whispered, "Thank you, sir…".
"All this is to say," Severus now sounded more like his usual self, "I understand now where your lack of self-preservation comes from. But it ends now, Potter. You will no longer act as if a stranger's life has double the value of yours. This is idiocy that I will not allow to continue. Are we clear?"
"Er...yeah." Severus gave him a look. "I mean, yes sir. I'll t-try." Severus nodded, satisfied enough for now.
"May I intrude?" Draco was standing in the doorway looking uncharacteristically awkward.
"How much did you hear?" Severus asked wryly.
Draco opened his mouth to answer but closed it, apparently thinking twice about what he wanted to say. "I...the last few minutes about Potter's family."
The boy looked at Potter with a strange expression, for once, seemingly lost for words. "Harry, I-"
"I don't want your pity," Potter snapped.
"And I don't want to show you pity, you prat, so that's just fine," Draco shot back before sighing. "I don't pity you, Harry, but I do feel the desire to study some necromancy so I can bring those muggles back and then torture them until they crumble back into nothingness!"
To Severus' surprise, Potter chuckled at this, rather than acting all goody-goody. Lily would have been shocked by such a statement, but Lily was much more sheltered from the dark parts of the world than her son had been.
I'll do my best to protect him now, Lily.
It was clear someone had to, and truly, Severus no longer minded the prospect.
I hope you liked it! Let me know what you think! tess4aria